Intangible
by KyraReid
Summary: Sarah was a normal woman with a normal life. She didn't die in some horrific accident or as some hero. She had done nothing special in her life and committed no foul crime. But when she dies, everything becomes the opposite of normal. She's a ghost, placed in a new and strange world. It's a lonely existence. But what is a ghost other than energy? Something this world has plenty of.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N This is just a little idea I had floating around in my head and decided to see how it would be received.**

BREAK

She had never been anything special. She had friends, a normal life, a normal job, a normal appearance. She was normal. She did not die as a hero or a tragic victim. She had been relatively normal, the only exception being her odd hobbies, which had not even then had not been too outlandish, considering the things that some people did. She had a love for plants and a bleeding heart for animals. She liked to learn things that others had little interest in. But she was so normal. Her personality, her appearance, her life, even her name. Sarah Tomb was the definition of normality. But what happened after she died was far from normal.

BREAK

Sarah had just finished closing down the store she worked at, ready to head home for the night. It was a cold night, just below freezing, but the woman was well used to the winter weather. The sky was clear, giving a nice view of the moon as she walked to her car. Really, Sarah thought the color was slightly obnoxious, it was yellow for heaven's sake, but it was a car she got when her mother bought a new one.

Sarah made the quick trip to the bank to drop off the deposit money for the store and then set off for home. It was a long drive, but not unbearably so, only a solid forty minutes from the bank. She navigated the highway safely, taking her exit. Sarah hummed to her music, in relatively good spirits despite the late hour. Closing alone tended to make her stay later.

She had just reached the s-curves beside a small creek when everything changed. The turns, while not overly sharp, were still enough of an angle that required slowing down, something Sarah did. What she had not accounted for was the road to be slick with ice. During the day the snow had melted slightly, wetting the pavement. As night fell it froze once more. It was a danger she had not seen.

One moment she was listening to her music and the next, Sarah's world spun. She felt a jarring thud as her car slammed into the guard rail before it gave way. The woman did not even have time to process what had happened before her world went black.

It was a late hour with few cars on the road. When someone did eventually pass by and stopped to call the cops, it made no difference. Paramedics soon showed up on the scene. Sarah was removed from her car, but it was too late. She was proclaimed dead on the scene. The crash into the creek had killed her instantly.


	2. Chapter 2

Sarah paid little attention as she wandered through the forest. She was not sure how much time had passed since she had awoken in this strange place, but she knew it had been a long time. Long enough to know that she did not need to eat or sleep. And long enough to know she was not a solid being. Shock had given away to fear which had then given away to grief. Now she felt empty.

She was nothing more than a lost soul. Wandering, searching for something. What that something was, however, she did not know. All Sarah knew was that something was pulling her. If it were not for that feeling, the dead woman would have undoubtedly stayed in one spot forever. Sarah felt detached from the world and all thought.

Then she felt them. Curiosity finally lifted its head as Sarah felt something different. Something alive. The ghost could feel the life in the forest animals she came across, but this was different. It was bigger, brighter and warmer. Sarah felt herself gravitating towards them.

* * *

It was a group of men. Men who were dressed rather strangely, though, Sarah was too detached from everything to really think about it. All she knew was that their life felt warm. It was a long time before she began to think at all. She began to process their voices.

There was anger, so much anger in them. Anger and fear. And it was all directed towards one of their group, the only one to not feel angry. He felt so sad. Sarah felt herself gravitating towards him. She clung on to his presence.

Slowly she began to think more. The headband that they wore, it felt familiar to her, though she was unsure why. But it was a feeling she held on to. Gradually she began to hear their words instead of just the sounds of the men's voices. She heard things like war, mission and failure. But only one of them stuck out in her mind. Sakumo.

She clung to the man called Sakumo. She was unsure as to why she did, but she just felt like it was important. A tingling sensation in the back of her mind appeared but she could not identify it, but she held tight to it.

The men moved out at a rapid pace and Sarah followed. She did not run, she did not walk. She simply appeared and disappeared. She was dead, normal movement did not apply to her. She simply moved place to place.

* * *

The men had stopped talking, which had given Sarah less to concentrate on. The dead woman could feel her thoughts slip away once more, Sakumo being her only anchor. Were it not for the draw she felt to his presence, Sarah would have long ago left the group.

Instead she faded in and out of thought. She lacked the ability to hold on to it for long, and coming back into what little coherency she could obtain took a long time. She clung tighter to Sakumo's warmth, no longer able to question it. She just knew it was important.

* * *

It was several days before something awakened Sarah's consciousness once more. Life.

She could feel it ahead of them. There were people, many people. Saukmo's home, though she was not sure how she knew that. Sarah could fell herself become more aware as they drew nearer. Joy, sorrow, anger, fear, and hope. The feelings that came from the place ahead drew Sarah like a moth to flames.

But she stayed attached to Sakumo. She did not know why she did it, only that if she let go of him, Sarah felt like something important would be lost. So she resisted the pull and held on to the sad man.

As they drew nearer, the men grew more and more agitated. Then they saw it. The gated entrance.

_Konohagakure no Sato._

Her mind supplied the name, and Sarah felt it was important, but why it was important, she did not know. She just knew she had to stay with this man. The ghost woman followed as Sakumo and the men entered a building, their anxiety growing with each step, until, at last, they stood before an old man.

Sarah began to understand more words. Things like failure and mission and Sakumo came from the men she had been with. Things like war and failure came from the old man. But Sarah did not understand. Failure and war were things beyond her comprehension. The ghost woman wondered if she once knew what such words meant.

* * *

Eventually the men were dismissed and Sarah continued to cling to Sakumo. The man's sadness was so thick, had she not been a ghost, Sarah though she might have cried for him. And the fear that came off of him. She did not understand why he was afraid.

The man made his way through the village. He had only just returned but already people were talking about him and the failed mission. Even though he ignored it all, Sarah could feel the burden he carried in his heart as it grew heavier and heavier.

Eventually they reached a house. Sarah absently thought it was a pleasant house. She saw the flowers in the front yard. Did she like flowers before?

Sakumo trudged up the path to the house and opened the door. There was no one there to greet him and Sakumo sighed. A mixture of relief and sadness. He made his way inside and up a flight of stairs before knocking on a door at the end of the hallway. Some words were said but Sarah did not understand them.

Then the door opened and a child appeared. Sarah was flung back into comprehension.

'_Oh. OH.' _Were her thoughts. There stood Kakashi Hatake as a child. Sarah wondered if she had gone to hell or heaven.


End file.
